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BOLIVIA, N.C.-- Wednesday, the American Civil Liberties Union of North Carolina Legal Foundation (ACLU-NCLF) sent a public records request to the Brunswick County Board of Education and the Brunswick County Board of Commissioners seeking all communications between officials related to recent efforts to ban "The Color Purple", by Alice Walker, from Brunswick County Advanced Placement English classes.

According to a news release, the organization also wants records of communications regarding any other proposed curriculum changes or plans for banning other works of literature from Brunswick County public schools going back to the 2012-2013 school year.

"The public deserves the know the real motivation and goals behind this disturbing movement to ban classic works of literature from Brunswick County public schools," said Chris Brook, Legal Director for the ACLU-NCLF, which has closely monitored the situation and had staff members present at board meetings. "Some Brunswick County officials have suggested that seeking to ban 'The Color Purple' may just be a first step in a much larger campaign to purge public school curriculum. We have been contacted by many local citizens who object to these attacks on the freedom to read and who are concerned about where this all may lead. We continue to urge the board to support academic freedom and reject calls to ban or make it harder for students to read great works of literature that promote critical thinking and dialogue."